Inspire Creativity at Work With All 5 of Your Senses. You’ve probably heard of the debate about whether open offices or the oh-so-dreaded traditional cubicles are better in the workplace.
All these discussions revolve around layout and arrangement, but did you know that ambience is equally (if not more) important for inspiring workplace creativity? If only the interior designer had known that people working in white offices are more likely to complain of nausea and headaches, or that dim lighting jump starts creative freedom, your office might be a much happier place. In fact, the best offices engage all five senses—everything from colors and music to smells and tastes—to maximize your productivity and creativity. Read the infographic below to decode why your office might be holding you back, and discover small things you can do to unleash your team’s creative powers in no time. Photo courtesy of PaperG. Infographic courtesy of CIPHR. How to Ask for a Raise. Do you think you deserve more for what you do at work?
Easiest Way to Get a Raise and Promotion. If, for some reason, you need any urging to become more aggressive about your career and financial future, a new study from Accenture should provide it.
The study was designed to figure out how satisfied men and women are at their jobs, and what they plan to do about it. But buried within the results are some eye-opening statistics about who gets a raise or promotion–and why. Accenture surveyed 3,400 professionals at medium and large-sized companies in 29 countries. Some 500 of those people were in the U.S. Respondents were split evenly between men and women and between three age groups: Generation Y, Generation X, and Baby Boomers. Ask Already! According to the survey, only 43% of people are satisfied with their jobs. Make a Temp Job Last. Should You Let Your Employees Work From Home? 5 Things to Do Every Day for Success. Fast Company wants you to have your best year yet in 2012; click for more advice and tips on how to work smarter, manage your career, and lead a more meaningful life.
"You get up at what time? " I hear that a lot, along with "You are so lucky. " So, I'm going to help out here and let you in on the secrets of my success. Well, not all of them--but enough to show you the foundation I build on every day. If Mentors Are So Important, Where Are They? Give Your Employees Unlimited Vacation Days. The 9 a.m.
-to-5 p.m. workplace is almost dead. Throw your preconceived notions about vacation out the window and give your employees the no-strings-attached, unlimited vacation days they deserve or you'll soon be a dinosaur. With an unparalleled culture in which our people actually enjoy coming to work (see Your Employees Need a Treehouse and Let Your Employees Choose Their Titles) as the foundation, every last Red Frog employee is unflinchingly focused and devoted to our mission. Producing vast amounts of quality work is the norm, so we reward them with unlimited vacation and they, in return, reward Red Frog with outstanding work that blows me away every single day.
Taking vacation at Red Frog is encouraged (and even celebrated). The pessimists and naysayers have said this policy would either be abused or that it's not entirely real—that our employees feel pressured to never take off. How to get a pay raise - Jan. 12. (MONEY Magazine) -- Another year, another piddling pay raise?
For some, sure. The average increase in base salary is expected to be just 3% in 2012, up only a hair from last year's 2.9%, according to human resources consulting firm Mercer. Still, managers are concerned about retaining top talent, which explains why the best performers will see a brighter 4.6% on average. How to Be Happy at Work. Let me start off with a little story.
I once knew a saleswoman–young, divorced–who got a diagnosis of breast cancer. She had to work and raise two kids while fighting the cancer. Even so, she managed to be happy at work, noticeably happier than her co-workers. In fact, she not only won her battle with cancer but subsequently became one of the top salespeople at Bristol Myers. She was not, as it happens, naturally cheerful. That saleswoman once told me: When you're unhappy, it's because you've decided to be unhappy. Maybe it wasn't a conscious decision; maybe it crept up on you while you weren't looking–but it was a decision nonetheless. Recruiting: 8 Qualities Your Best Employees Should Have. Great employees are reliable, dependable, proactive, diligent, great leaders and great followers... they possess a wide range of easily-defined—but hard to find—qualities.
A few hit the next level. Some employees are remarkable, possessing qualities that may not appear on performance appraisals but nonetheless make a major impact on performance. Here are eight qualities of remarkable employees: